Here’s what I believe
Your writing is trying to make sense of something that won’t let you go. It’s beyond capture, beyond understanding, even. The beauty is in the question. Not the answer.
Your task is not to judge your work, but to get out of your head and into your dream space. That’s where your power resides.
There’s tremendous freedom with form. Learn technique and practice it as rigorously and seriously as any dancer, musician, or athlete.
A big part of the writing process is uncovering why you’re writing your story in the first place. What are you trying to understand about the experience? Once you have that, you’re half way there. Promise.
There’s something uniquely brilliant about your writing. Even if you’re just beginning. Even if it isn’t obvious on the page yet.
Write from what you know towards what you don’t know. Not knowing creates space in your work. This is just as true in memoir as it is in fiction.
You know more about the craft of writing than you realize, simply by being alive. Pay attention. Trust your instincts.
You have a story to write.
It’s powerful, evocative, and above all, moving.
It’s the story you were born to tell.
But you’re stuck in the middle of your story. You’re confused. Overwhelmed. You’ve lost focus. You’ve lost your voice. And now you’re wondering if what you have to say is any good. Will anyone care? Will anyone even read it? Does your story matter?
Let me be clear.
Your story matters. It matters to you and it matters to your readers.
Because we all need connection, now more than ever. When readers open your pages, what they’re asking of you is, Show me, me.
Stories transform. They transform you and they transform your reader.
Stories help us all feel less alone.
But writing something worth reading requires a balance of patience and persistence. A mix of inspiration and technique.
The truth is, you can’t write in a vacuum. And you can’t rush the process. Sometimes, you need a trained eye on your pages to give you a clear path forward. To help you dismantle misconceptions about the writing process, and even misconceptions about your own ability to write a great story.
But there is a clear path. There are techniques and mindsets that make the process less daunting. More joyful.
I help you find the freedom that comes with honing your craft. So you can stop second-guessing yourself, trust your instincts, and write the best damn story you can.
You’ll write with your vision, your spin on the world and all that you are. That’s what it’s all about. Otherwise we’d all be writing the same books.
My Street Cred
I’m a writer, editor and host of the podcast, Writer Unleashed. As a writer and editor, I’ve worked on everything from novels, short stories, and memoir to audiovisual scripts, marketing, and web copy.
I’ve published in The New Yorker, Redbook, and the Catskill Mountain Region Guide where I got to write about the creative processes of some of my personal heroes, including Twyla Tharp, Ballet Hispanico, and Pilobolus Dance Theater.
My stories have been finalists in the Howard Frank Mosher Short Fiction Prize, Inkwell Journal’s Fiction Prize, and the Gulf Coast Fiction Award.
I received my M.FA. in Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts where I also delivered a graduate lecture on how to select and use significant details in fiction and memoir.
I’ve talked about the writing life and the writing practice on the radio. Listen here.
The Backstory
My writing obsession began early. As a child, I was prolific and fearless. I wrote with no limitations. No resistance.
But somewhere along the line, I abandoned writing for more reliable, lucrative pursuits.
My father had put me through college, after all, and I was duty-bound to make good on that investment.
So, while I held many writing-related jobs after college — in magazines, advertising, public relations, and my own freelance writing business — it wasn’t until I turned 39 that I finally took a stand and began writing solely for myself. I said goodbye to my clients, sold my apartment, and moved to a streamside apartment in the Catskills surrounded by streams and mountain views.
During the next two years, I earned my MFA in Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts and wrote my first short story collection. Giving up my business and my home to pursue something that had absolutely no guarantee of succeeding was terrifying, believe me. But taking my writing seriously was the best investment I ever made in myself — and in my writing.
In 2006, in Phoenicia New York, I launched the Emerging Writers Studio, a workshop for writers starting or returning to their writing after years of putting their writing dreams on hold. What I discovered through working with this intimate group of writers was how putting their stories to paper, and getting closer to the truth, was an act of self-discovery, empowerment, and compassion.
Today I work with writers all over the world. My long term clients publish and win awards in anthologies, journals, and magazines. And many others are well on their way to completing novels, memoirs, and story collections.
WHICH BRINGS ME BACK TO YOU
Maybe you’ve come to the writing game late. Or you or want to rekindle your practice after years of putting your writing dreams on hold.
And you may be wondering by now if you’re any good at this writing gig. Let me assure you. There’s something uniquely brilliant about your writing. Even if you’re an absolute beginner.
The thing is, it’s so innate, you probably aren’t even aware of it.
One of my superpowers as an editor and coach is seeing your superpowers, and yep, we all have em. Even if yours aren’t showing up on the page at the moment.
I’ll show you how to maximize your strengths while developing the tools to move past your most insurmountable blocks.
You’ll learn a wide range of techniques to write, revise, and re-envision your story with examples from published authors. Together, we’ll look under the hood of some of your favorite books so you can deepen your understanding of craft.
I’ll save you weeks, months, even years of floundering aimlessly. So that you can finish your story once and for all, and move to publication faster.
Learn how we can work together here.
Listen to the podcast here.